The retail parks, comprising a total of approximately 117,700 square metres of space, are 97% occupied and leased to 72 high-quality tenants including grocery chains Mercadona, Aldi and Dia; fashion brands C&A, Kiabi and Merkal Calzados; as well as Burger King, Media Markt, Sprinter and AKI Bricolaje.

Andrew Vaughan, Redevco’s CEO, said: “Our joint venture has taken these properties to the next level, cementing their dominance in their catchment areas so that they continue to attract shoppers and retailers. We identified a number of initiatives to enhance the operating performance of these assets, and we have worked closely with our tenants to modernize and improve the quality of the parks. Our efforts encompassed leasing up space, refurbishments, re-gearing leases and starting to redevelop the park in Granada. Their sale marks the successful execution of the JV’s strategy.”

Bill Benjamin, Partner of Ares Management and Head of the Ares Real Estate Group, said: “Ares invested in these retail parks at the early stages of the Spanish recovery. This sale demonstrates the strength of our JV, which enabled us to quickly assemble and reposition a portfolio of critical mass for exit to an institutional buyer. This is consistent with Ares’ longstanding strategy for real estate investing, which entails identifying attractive acquisition opportunities, enhancing properties to an institutional grade, and then finding a buyer seeking a secure and stabilised income. Our JV continues to review potential acquisitions within the retail sector on the Iberian Peninsula that have significant repositioning opportunities.”